The Series Project: Ernest (Part 1)

The Pre-Film Days of Ernest P. Worrell:

There was a time when Ernest P. Worrell stood astride the American pop landscape like a mighty colossus. Seen in commercials, a TV show, on toy shelves (yes, there was a talking Ernest doll), and in ten (count ‘em, ten) feature films, Ernest was once dallying about with legitimate “phenomenon” status. At the very least, he is intimately familiar to members of my generation, and his look (ballcap and denim vest) and oft-repeated catchphrase (“KnowhutImean?”) are significant pop culture markers in many people’s childhoods.

Where did Ernest come from? Well it turns out that the Ernest P. Worrell character was actually borne of a savvy, unprecedented, and as of now, one-of-a-kind marketing ploy. I cannot find how they teamed up, but Ernest was created in 1979 or 1980 by expressive comedian Jim Varney (who has been the only actor to play Ernest) and a pair of marketing gurus named John Cherry and Jerry Carden as a mascot-for-hire. Rather than most product mascots, Ernest was not created for a particular brand, but was intended to be used for whatever product would think to hire him. As such, Ernest became the face of numerous products, from local businesses (I first saw him in ads for Cerritos Auto Square) to nationwide consumer goods (he once even shilled for Sprite).

The ads were all the same: Ernest, addressing the camera (and referring to the viewer as “Vern”) would ramble at length, almost in a stream-of-consciousness, about the product in question. He would mug, grin, and was sure to include his catchphrase “KnowhutImean?” All the ads were shot in the yard of John Cherry’s Nashville home, and could be made on an extremely low budget. The character was annoying but still somehow immensely appealing (especially to little kids, who loved the mugging). Pretty soon, it didn’t matter what was being advertised; we just liked to see Ernest. In a clever way, the Ernest TV spots were more advertisements for the character than they were for the products.

A second video was released in 1986 called Ernest’s Greatest Hits, Volume One, which, contrary to its title, also contained a lot of original material. These videos also featured some of Ernest’s TV spots. It’s one of the only times in history I can think of wherein consumers were encouraged to pay extra money specifically to look at recent TV advertisements. Ernest began a new relationship between advertisers and consumers. It was the first time in marketing history where the ads became the product.

Ernest was eventually featured in several other TV specials and straight-to-video 45-minute specials. By 1987, the Ernest feature films had begun playing in theaters, all making huge amounts of money. In 1988, there was a one-season Ernest TV show called “Hey Vern, It’s Ernest!” There was eventually a Greatest Hits Volume 2 video, a few plugs for Disneyland, and a bafflingly maudlin collection called Your World as I See It in 1994. The Ernest phenomenon ended in 2000 when Varney died. But that wasn’t before ten movies had been made.

The first six Ernest movies were released theatrically, and all of them were immensely successful, with the exception of the sixth one. After that, four more Ernest movies were made that went straight to video over the course of four years. An eleventh Ernest film, Ernest the Pirate, was in production when Varney died. No plans have been made to resurrect the character, largely because he is inextricably linked with Varney.